I post this for a fellow textile enthusiast and member of the forum - Leonore Blackwood. Regards, IainGlad you said this, Iain, as I was worried that some nasty spammer had hijacked your identity, Pamela

I have a very old Miao skirt from Songtao up on Ebay at present. I bought this in l996 and it was the only one of its kind I ever saw for sale.I would be interested if any member has further information about this skirt.

Ann Goodman has been in touch with me having see Lenore's skirt. Ann says:

Quote:

In response to Iain's post for his friend, I believe that the skirt she has posted on EBay is similar to the Miao skirt form Fenghuang County, Hunan, Late 19th Century, illustrated in the Writing With Threads catalog on p. 20 back and 140 front. I have a similar skirt in my collection, see attachedBest,Ann

Hi Ann,
I think I lost my first post.
Really interesting to see your skirt. Iain said he had seen two examples, rather more worn than mine, in Taiwan.
Your skirt is certainly much richer looking and on examining mine I wonder if it might have once been longer and wider too. It could very well have been salvaged from a very worn larger skirt. It is unusually modest in size for a Miao adult's skirt.
Thank you for your reply.
Lenore

Hope you don't mind but I have copied your image from the Ebay link and attached it to your first post. Makes the discussion and comparison with Ann's skirt much easier and turns this into a more informative thread for forum members.

It looks to me as if a bit of your skirt may have been removed from the bottom. The embroidered motifs look a little truncated although, comparing with Ann's, not a lot.

I wonder if your skirt is a child's skirt not an adult's? It does not seem in the photo as thickly pleated (or to provide such a big circumference) and it could explain the much shorter length. It might well have been made from an adult's skirt where the best parts were kept and recycled. The bottom edges of a skirt might well get worn. Children usually wore/wear miniature versions of adult clothing. It was also very much the custom to recycle good parts of used textiles especially where considerable labour had originally been put into creating the first textile item or the fabrics were precious/expensive.

Hi Pamela and Ann,
Yes, I agree it could well have been made for a child from an adult's very worn skirt. I have seen many such adaptations over the years but didn't twig to it with this skirt, probably because the waist band is very large for a child and overlap wrapping would interfere with the hang of the skirt.

It would not have been cut from the bottom though as the original folding is all there. The double cloth folded at the bottom before embroidery added.

A number of the panels have joined pieces at the top which must have been done before recycled panels were stitched to new or adapted waistband. One of the two end panels was certainly once joined to another.

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